Anti-Sikh riots 1984 conviction: Sajjan Kumar to move Supreme Court

Congress leader Sajjan Kumar, who has been sentenced for life for his involvement in the 1984, anti-Sikh riot, has decided to move Supreme Court challenging the verdict delivered by the Delhi High court on Monday, according to his advocate.

According to the lawyer, the High Court verdict is over 200 pages and so it will require time and mind to go through the entire order and only after that they will move to the top court against the verdict, news agency PTI reported.

Sajjan Kumar has been given time till December 31 to surrender. His lawyer Advocate Anil Sharma said that that the 73-year-old leader would be challenging the order to the top court before the surrender date.

If no appeal would be filed before December 31, Kumar would surrender, Sharma was quoted as saying by PTI.

Earlier in the day, septuagenarian Sajjan Kumar was convicted in the killing of five members of a family in Delhi’s Raj Nagar. The Delhi court has asked him to surrender by December 31 and cannot leave the city.

The court said in its statement, “It is important to assure the victims that despite the challenges truth will prevail,” the High Court said, referring to the courage of Jagdish Kaur, the victim who had fought for action against Sajjan Kumar and others. “The aftershock of those atrocities is still being felt.”

At least 3,000 people were killed by mobs led by Congress leaders after the assassination of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi by her Sikh bodyguards, in November 1984.

Many survivors and witnesses gave accounts of Congress leaders leading mobs targeting Sikhs, Sajjan Kumar is the first top rung leader of the party to be convicted in the case. Notably, the order comes on a day the Congress takes over three big states after its election victories last week.